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The magnitude was downgraded to 5.2. More info {{link http://english.chosun.com/w21data/html/news/200405/200405300087.html here}}. I’ve just finished posting many new photos taken during the trip to Ongkinara Pottery School. Check them out on the {{link http://www.montanaron.com/Copper/Copper/thumbnails.php?album=13 photo page}}. I was in my first earthquake today, the first that I can remember feeling. I was sitting at the computer about 7:20 pm when I heard a loud boom and then I felt some movement and noticed that the computer monitor was rocking slightly from side to side. It lasted a few seconds and I wondered whether it was the ventilation unit on top of the building kicking in or whether it actually was a quake. I looked outside, but no one walking in the streets or standing on the balcony of the hospital next door seemed too concerned. A couple of the other teachers noticed it also. We took a walk downtown to do some shopping and on returning I checked Google. Sure enough, we experienced a {{link http://news3.xinhuanet.com/english/2004-05/29/content_1497591.htm 5.9 magnitude quake}}. The peninsula is somewhat {{link http://www.kmaneis.go.kr/eng05.htm prone to earthquakes}}, but is not nearly as bad off as Japan. It was an interesting experience. I’ll keep my eyes and ears peeled for more news. Yes, I’m still here. Been a while since I’ve posted. I did make it to the always expensive (for me, anyway) Seoul, and took a few photos, which I haven’t yet posted to the gallery. I’ll try to do that soon. This past Wednesday was {{link http://english.chosun.com/w21data/html/news/200405/200405260003.html Buddha’s Birthday}}, and it is a national holiday. Having the day off, I went with my taekwando instructor, several other western teachers in another one of his classes, and 17 taekwandolets (ages 5-11, about) to visit a pottery making area, {{link http://www.ongkinara.co.kr Ongkinara}}, down by {{link http://www.gunwi.go.kr/html/english/ Gunwi}}. I was able to make . . . ummmm . . . something. Well, it’s supposed to be a candle holder, but it looks more like an old fort that got shot to pieces, with holes riddling the walls. We get our creations back in about a month, I’m told, so I’ll take a photo of IT when IT arrives. If I’m lucky, IT will be destroyed in transit. Everyone had a good time, though, and the little kids were adorable working with the clay. See the gallery for some of the photos I shot, with more to be posted soon. I may not be posting for awhile. On Wednesday, June 9th, I have to give a speech at a teacher-training session to about 45 Andong area elementary and high school teachers. The talk has to last about 40 minutes, and it will cover, more or less, the newer methodologies in ESL (English as a Second Language) teaching. I was chosen to volunteer because of my Master’s Degree in Applied Linguistics. I knew I’d be cursing that thing eventually. (LOL) But, the powers that be want a 5 page (about) manuscript of the speech by this Wednesday, so I’ll be working on it (or it’ll be working on me) and my time will be somewhat limited. I hope to get most of it finished this weekend, BUT tomorrow I am supposed to go to the taekwando academy and take my test for the blue belt, only two shy of the black one. See {{link http://visionmartialarts.com/student.htm#belts here}} for the order of the belts, except the brown comes before the blue in the academy I attend. Thus, I’ll be pretty busy this weekend. It’s raining as I post this, but it’s supposed to stop tomorrow and the weather for the rest of the weekend is supposed to be nice. Argghhh! That’s going to make it tough to concentrate on getting my speech together. Sidenote to all the Yankee haters–the hitting is coming around. 18-5 over Baltimore today, following thrashings of 12-9 and 11-3. Watch out! Well, sort of a vacation. There is a 3-day university festival taking place Wed., Thurs., and Fri. this week. It’s more of a big drunk, so I’ve been told, though I’m sure that there must be something of value going on. Anyway, I’m off to Seoul on Wed. and Thurs. to do a little shopping. I’ll try to get some pics of the big city and post them in the gallery. I see the U.S. is going to pull some 3600 troops out of Seoul to send to Iraq. It’ll be interesting to see how this affects things over here. Chances are, no one will notice a difference. Perhaps a few less fights and drunken brawls in the Seoul area. Some {{link http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=516&ncid=731&e=10&u=/ap/20040515/ap_on_re_as/skorea_us_military GIs were arrested}} yesterday for fighting and for stabbing a Korean during an argument. There’s always something going on like that, it seems. Not good for the U.S. image. Very bad news here at Andong National University. All of us foreign teachers lost a good friend last night when Rick Carrier was killed in a motorcycle accident in Cheongju, about 3 hours from here. Rick was a teacher at ANU for several years before moving on to Cheongju in February this year. He was a friend to all. He is survived by his wife, Kay, and our deepest condolences go out to her. This underscores the extremely high rate of traffic fatalities in Korea, one of the highest rates in the world (see {{link http://www.dfat.gov.au/zw-cgi/view/Advice/South_Korea here}} and {{link http://travel.state.gov/skorea.html here}}, among other sources). I was seriously considering buying a used motorcycle, but Rick’s death will definitely cause me to rethink any purchase plans. Added more photos to the {{link http://montanaron.com/Copper/Copper/ Gallery,}} which is now showing that there are 126 photos in 9 albums. Check it out. There are many more to come; I would guess that I have close to 500 photos to look at. Of course, not all of them are worth posting online. But I’ll be busy for a while trying to pick and choose. What I’m listening to recently. I found and downloaded from {{link http://calabashmusic.com Calabash Music}} two albums that have my legs moving and feet tapping. One is {{link http://bacissoko.calabashmusic.com Ba Cissoko’s}} debut album, Sabolan. This is a group of young musicians from {{link http://www.lonelyplanet.com/destinations/africa/guinea/ Guinea}}, Africa who are based in Marseilles, France. A great premier. The other album is from the legendary {{link http://www.lonelyplanet.com/destinations/africa/zimbabwe/ Zimbabwean}} musician/revolutionary/voice of the people, {{link http://www.leopardmannen.no/m/mapfumo.thomas.asp?lang=gb Thomas Mapfumo}}. The album is entitled Chimerenga Rebel, and, where the white rulers of the former Rhodesia threw him in prison without trial for his support of their overthrow, this album skewers the man he once thought could lead Zimbabwe to a bright future, the dictator and tyrant {{link http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Mugabe Robert Mugabe.}} One of the sources I read states that Mapfumo lives at least part of the time on the west coast of Oregon–Randy, check that out for me, would you? Both are great albums and I play them often, as I’m sure my nearest apartment neighbors can attest. Also, if you are interested in downloading African music for a cheap price, try Calabash–it seems to be a very righteous source. I’m also reading {{link http://www.postcolonialweb.org/caribbean/naipaul/bio.html V.S. Naipaul’s}} The Writer and the World, a book of essays by the Nobel-winning author. Kind of dry reading, but still interesting to read his take on the world back in the ’60s and ’70s. Ok, I’ve got most of the photos transferred to the new gallery and I’ve uploaded many more with lots to come. The new gallery has a lot of features, such as a search function, the ability to add comments about the photos and the ability to rate each photo. I hope you like it; I know I do. It is fun to work with the software {{link http://coppermine.sourceforge.net Coppermine Photo Gallery}} and it is a lot easier to add new photos. There are also a lot of other features that I may incorporate as soon as I learn the program better, features like registering and adding your own photos to your own gallery. Let me know what you think. O, ye Naysayers and Doubters, ye Prophets of Doom. Hah! The Yanks just won their eighth in a row, coming back again against Oakland after yesterday’s fantastic come-from-behind victory. There’s a good article about The Boss by Sports Illustrated coming out and there are some excerpts {{link http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2004/writers/tom_verducci/05/04/steinbrenner.qa/index.html here.}} I’m in the process of adding a new photo album to the site, so if you have trouble accessing the galleries, please be patient. Happy Children’s Day! Yes, we’re off today due to it being {{link http://english.chosun.com/w21data/html/news/200405/200405050003.html Children’s Day}} here in Korea, a national holiday. Unfortunately, Wednesday is my easy teaching day anyway, with only one class, so the holiday is not that special, as far as getting a break from a busy day. Beautiful weather here today, also. Sunny, temps supposed to be close to 70. Spring is in full swing in Andong and South Korea, the flowers blooming and the trees greening virtually overnight, it seems. We’re getting some rain today, another of the frequent showers we’ve had lately. I know my Montana friends would love to have some moisture, but (sigh) I can’t help you. Here is a photo of one of the many beautiful flower beds at Andong U. See more on the home page.
Yes, spring is in full swing in Andong and all of South Korea. The flowers bloomed and the trees greened almost overnight, it seems. Here are a few shots of the beautiful flower gardens at the entrance to Andong U. It’s raining again today, just as did last week, when we received a downpour. I know my Montana friends would love to have this. Sigh. Can’t help you. |
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